Watch for the Payback

Senator Gregg’s withdrawal from consideration as Commerce Secretary was principled and gracious. It was also smart, in at least two ways.

This stimulus is a tar baby for any Republican who might be tempted to be associated with it. Gregg was wise to step away.

The second smart thing was declaring up front that this had nothing to do with the vetting process.

The question now is whether we begin to see any pay back — selective leaks of the private information Gregg was obliged to hand over to the Obama administration. I doubt Obama would ever countenance such a thing. The question is whether others in his White House are so restrained.